Zenit`s captain explained at his press conference before taking on Basel that his team will do everything tomorrow to advance to the next round of the Europa League.

Photo: Vyachesla Evdokimov

— You spoke to Malafeev personally before the penalty kick was taken in the first match vs. Basel. Apparently you were telling him what to do. Tell us, how often do you, as captain, tell the other players what to do?— I just wanted to waste some time, to break the Basel player`s concentration, so that he`d miss. I tell the other guys what to do no less than before.

— What do you think, how possible is it for Zenit to win 4:0? Or maybe 7:0, like Bayern Munich?— We got two goals back against Marseille when we won the UEFA Cup in 2008, although we haven`t come back from 0:2 down yet. It`s totally possible to come back though, and we`ll prove it tomorrow.

— Congratulations on being one of the starters tomorrow.— You already know about that?

— There`s a superstition that whoever comes to the press conference will also start in the match.— But there`s a first time for everything.

— Yesterday Barcelona showed how to play after being down 0-2 in the first match. Which Zenit player will take on Messi`s role tomorrow?— We all will. What difference does it make, who takes on Messi`s role? The important thing is that we win and move on.